The Research Laboratory forms the key to the research training and outcomes for your honours project.

The laboratory will provide the academic context and theme for your individual honours research project. The laboratory is an interdisciplinary project space where all participants will investigate a common topic or theme, under the direction of a research leader. Specific research themes will vary from year to year, reflecting current projects, industry partnerships and university research directions.

You will develop your knowledge and expertise in relation to the laboratory theme, combining specific domain knowledge with contextual investigations into how the theme relates to your own discipline and practice. The themes will be general enough to provide engagement for your disciplinary area, and specific enough to provide a pathway and focus for your research.

Objectives/Learning Outcomes/Capability Development

The following program capabilities are developed and assessed in this course:

work collaboratively and ethically in interdisciplinary teams

demonstrate leadership through developing projects and collaborative processes and be able to explain why this work matters to others in appropriate ways

articulate your abilities as a researcher and collaborate with others.

Overview of Learning Activities

The laboratory will consist of a small cohort facilitated by a research leader (lecturer). Your learning will involve a range of activities including readings, class discussion, research, collaborative and individual projects, and documentation, and the preliminary planning of a major research project. You will be expected to document your learning in an ongoing manner through the laboratory.

Overview of Learning Resources

A list of recommended resources will be provided by the research leader, including books, essays, journal articles, and web resources. In addition you will be expected to find additional resources, with an emphasis on using the research tools available via the library.

Overview of Assessment

Assessment will include a mix of formative and summative activities. Each laboratory will produce a variety of outcomes relevant to its theme. Assessment activities may include reports, assignments, projects, presentations, individual and group work.